How to FIX TARGET PANIC 

I’m 66 years old been bow hunting 44 years, two months ago bought the new phase 4,in saying all that I was struck with target panic bad, I lost two arrows in two weeks. I knew it wasn’t the bow but I could not bring my sights back up. I talked to my local bow shops with no help. I been preparing for my first bow elk hunting and I’ve been saying I’m just anxious about the hunt. Chris Bee your target panic exercise has me dialed back in. I went through a horrible two weeks in the military shooting , it was all a mental illness is what I called it. I’m on day three and I’m shooting at different dots so I’m not busting arrows. Never to old to learn. Thanks for the help

Just want to put out a massive thank you to you Chris, you have helped so many people through stuff like this it is unbelievable. I've struggled with target panic ever since i picked up archery 3 years ago watching your videos. I saw this video last week and figured i would try it out. I had to restart at the first stage 3 times before took another step. It has been 5 days and i am shooting groups half the size i used to without punching or any drive by's. I know there are probably hundreds of others with my story and we can't thank you enough. And to anyone out there thinking you couldnt do this, try it. I thought the same thing but i fell into a rythym and began to look forward to the sessions and i think you will too

Target panic videos give me target panic lol I swear it’s contagious

Drawing ,aiming, holding and letting down also reinforces the fact you DO NOT have to fire. It’s ok to not go ahead and make the shot. This way if everything about your shot cycle isn’t right it’s the thing to do is LET DOWN! Plus, you are building up your muscles too. Being in shooting shape or lowering draw weight to control the cycle is very important.

I’ve tried everything to fix TP but this actually works. For us normal people who only shoot about 3-4 months out of the year, doing this at the beginning of the season is such a good place to start.

My coach taught me this 20 years ago and iv been a firm believer of the method the whole time. Awesome information Chris hopefully it can help the masses

It worked, Thank you for this video. I thought I was going to have to give up shooting my bow and just do crossbow. I didn't cheat. Shot 50-60 arrows a day 3 days at each yardage. The only thing I changed was by the time I got to 15 yards I shot 5 arrows and went back to 20, 25, 30. Hitting bulls all distances, holding longer more steady breathing normal. Everything came back. Can't thank you anof for this. Would love to see more teaching videos like this. Very help full. Thanks.

3 weeks of this completely rewired me 6 months ago. I didn't realise i was fixing a problem, to me it was just a way to go through my shot process at home, as I was shooting everyday at every opportunity. 2 years into that routine, I was getting noticeably worse than when i first started shooting. Locked off, punching, I had it all. I drew a heap of little dots like a clock face on my bag and just went around lap after lap until I was putting arrows back in the same hole time after time. I came out of that room Robin hooding arrows at 50m with super tight groups of 12 out to 80m. If I don't do it for say 2 weeks, some of the flinching bs comes back. I can't recommend this tactic enough, it will fix the problem for you. Seeing this video just affirmed it for me. Thx Chris

This video has helped me so much I got a severe case of target panic when I was 13 at an indoor match couldn't even get on the bale I'm now 26 ended up just quiting archery till about 5 years ago and got back into shooting to bow hunt I've made some good shots on deer in the last few years but still suffer from a little target panic until I watched this video and it has changed everything I'm way more confident with my bow than I have been in a long time.

Great video! I wished I had this to watch a few months ago when I started to practice for a local 3D league. My issue was that I was mostly self taught, and would always punch the index release with my finger. Even after being out of archery for many years (about 12 years) and returning, I still pulled it more like a trigger on a firearm. I did get a thumb button and set up a target in my basement , practicing on form at 10 yards with 1" dots. I still have some work to do, but out of 30 targets last round (unknown yardage course), I missed only 1 completely and had 2 others in the non-scoring ring area. I am looking forward to catching up and learning from the rest of your videos.

I had major target panic about 10 years ago. Drive by punching. Went to the Carter Evolution tension, didn’t shoot at a target face for 6months. Just practicing the shot at short distance. But by the time put a face on couldn’t believe how easy aiming was. Now I shoot a Hinge (UV), but I’ve never been able to shoot a trigger release. My brain won’t let me. Brings up bad memories!

Probably one of the best videos I’ve watched in a long time. Helping other conquer their problems

Thanks for the video, I have target panic pretty bad. When I pull up to the bottom of my target when I get to the bottom I can not pull my bow up the other two inches. If I leave my finger off the trigger no problem. Soon as I put my finger on the Trigger I'm all over the place. And I've bow hunted for years. It's never been a problem shooting at a deer. I just center up behind the shoulder and let it go. Shooting at a deer I'm not focused on a tiny spot so I'm good on a deer. Soon as I target shoot and focus on a small spot hole different ball game can't ever hold in the center of a target it is always two inches low and can not bring it up. I'm going to try your method. Thanks so much for that video!!

You describe what I went through in pretty accurate detail 😂 I had a wrist strap that I had both drive by and trigger punching panic intermittently. I switched to a button and it ended up fixing the issue but I also figured out what I was doing with the wrist strap so now I can shoot either - BUT the take away here is you’re 100% correct that it’s all a mental process issue.

I’ve had a couple little bouts of panic in my life, and this has been my process to relieve it every time, and it’s been game changing! Like you said though, DON’T CHEAT THE PROCESS! This video could help thousands of folks, and even people that ignore the fact that every arrow they release was released under “panic”!

Great video! I have been struggling off n on this year with some target panic. This is a process I am going to start doing. Thanks for sharing!

Great Video as always... Thanks for taking the time to visit and chat for a moment at TAC in Utah! Hope we cross paths again!

Thanks for the great info ! I struggle with target panic so much in years past that I actually hung up the compound and hunted with crossbow for a couple years . But I’m back to shooting compound again now . I’m definitely going to be implementing this process !

The best and easiest way to aim is to focus on the target dot. The target dot doesn't move and is calming, whereas the pin cannot be held completely still and is anxiety provoking. Trying to control and compensate for the moving pin is the source of frustration and panic. Focusing on the target and "ignoring" the pin GREATLY reduces pin movement and it will intuitively center on the dot. That is because the intuitive mind is more fluid than muscle. Focusing on the pin and expecting it to hold still, all while centered on the dot is the main cause of target panic. I am shocked that he doesn't mention this. Zen breathing is important too. He doesn't mention this either.

I've calmed down my shot process a lot in the last year. I was unable to hunt because of a thumb injury. A cable press snapped on me and my thumb got pulled in between the string and the top idler pulley. Needless to say, I only have a little over half of my thumb on my bow hand. So, I made myself a kind of "shot trainer" out of a 3ft piece of D-Loop material and a piece of wood that I carved to match the contours of my bow grip. I was able to practice my shot process without even picking up my bow. Just sitting around working on the mental part of my shot has made it where I actually hold my aim till the movement settles down, instead of shooting as soon as my pin hits the target.I will add your drill to my routine as well. It can't hurt. Thank you.

Thanks Chris for this video and passing on George's tips. I don't usually struggle with target panic, but every once in a while, come up with a slight form of it. If I experience it, it's always very slight and in the form of a tiny flinch at the release due to not wanting to miss. I just finished day one at 3 years and already feel like I'm back to following through with my shot sequence and not closing my loop by punching the thumb. I'll definitely see it all the way through and can't wait to see how mind retraining ends up. Thanks for your videos, and maybe I'll see you in Redding if you make it in May!

I've watched a few different channels about target panic, and I don't think I've heard anyone else explain this method. I definitely hold under and know I'll likely hit a little higher than the pin. Thanks man.

Thanks for the advice! I like this grind it out and put in the time style of fixing target 🎯 panic. Hopefully will get some people to start shooting my regularly too.

I've done this reset a couple times. 👏🏻 Love the content, crazy to see how much has changed since you were gunning for 20k subs

Thanks for this video. I can't wait to put this to practice tomorrow. I have had this hold, like you said, a brick on my arm, and I can't get myself to move the bow up. I have been shooting archery for 30+ years and took a break for a few years. Got a new bow last year and couldn't hit anywhere, or I should say I couldn't hold a pin on anything. I was thinking of giving up until I saw this. Thanks. I'm looking forward to shooting half dollar size groups agin.

To me, that sounds very anxiety inducing. The let down technique is probably the most effective here. Learning a surprise shot is probably the most effective tool in the box, and that’s why a hinge is such a great tool. Blank baling or blind bailing is a good way to help learn a hinge. For many, simply knowing you are NOT going to pull the trigger is enough to improve their aiming dramatically. I would also suggest target panic isn’t the fear of hitting the middle, its the fear of missing it. And when we do a command shot, we often struggle with that fear of missing, that’s where you start punching or doing a drive by. You’re afraid you will miss that 1 chance to fire at the perfect time. Learning to just let it float, and let the shot happen, I feel, will help more archers deal with target panic, than knowing if you mess up the 49th arrow at 20 yards, you will have to start over. YMMV.

Man! I needed this video! I have actually switched back and forth between releases...with temporary help. I panicked so bad the other day that I completely missed the entire target and backstop (2 1/2 feet to the right of center at 30 yards) and hit my garage door! I HAVE to fix this before August 10th when archery deer season starts. Thank you for your knowledge!

Great insight! I’ve always struggled with TP, and have never found a good solution. I will definitely go through these steps. Great timing too, plenty of time before archery elk season in September! Thanks

Really good video Chris. This is my 50th year of bowhunting, and I shot instinctively with fingers and a bare bow for the first 15 or so years. No target panic with that kind of shooting. But when I went with sights and a release, I found that I have experienced target panic off and on for the past 35 years. Here's the bizarre thing: I almost never experience target panic when shooting at a game animal, only when shooting at a target. When I decide I am going to shoot the deer, the bear or whatever is in front of me, I go into this hyper-focused mode where everything seems to slow down and become automatic. It's hard to describe but I don't want to mess with it. The few times when I have not gone into that "mode" are times when I don't always make the best shot. I've killed around 150 big game animals with a bow, and it's strange that I can sometimes have target panic when shooting in the yard, but not when I have a big buck, or even a really big bear in front of me. Any thoughts on this?

It’s funny you mention changing releases and it may fix target panic completely for some because that is what happened for me. I shot a index and punched it like mad and decided to try a thumb button and found that I couldn’t punch the thumb accurately at all. Learned how to activate it correctly and get a surprise release every time and now I can shoot but my index and thumb without any punching. The mind is a crazy thing! Thanks for all the great archery knowledge and being so committed to the sport!

Going to give this a go! Thanks Chris for this video, its nice to know that it's just not me that have this type of challenge to overcome.

Great vid..I have those problems,thanks for the advice..👍.

The Stan Onnex-C (with a click) button "resistance" release has a training pin you can use to keep the release from firing as you do your drills. It won't allow you to fire the release while the pin is in the release so it would be easy to come to the click then let down without firing the arrow.

This is a problem I’ve had for a couple years now and I just seem to keep getting worse. I still shoot pretty well but definitely know I’m holding way low and throwing them in. I will be doing this forsure. I’ve never seen anyone post anything about this or how to fix it. Again another solid video!

Started this process today! Hopefully I can get back on track I’ve been locking low on the dot for awhile now. Thanks for the video!

EXCELLENT I will add this...in the dark...stand at 3 yards...get light on your pins...put a concentrated light on the target that you can only see that light on the target. For severe cases!!!

You gave me some great ideas thank you. I'm a beginner at this archery. Love your vids thanks.

Thank you for this!

Aiming and letting down really helped me, never heard of the process you described. I’ll give it a try, I’m always locking in low and doing the drive by😂

Definitely needed this, plan on doing it after my expo I have so I can do it all the way through

Definitely watching this. I need it for sure cuz i have a cow elk hunt in like 3 weeks and its my first archery hunt haha😅

Dude thanks I got my bow back from getting new strings and got it sighted in and now I got target panic and thanks for reminding me

This helped me so much and I didn’t even realize that’s what target panic was

Chris, I am new to archery as of Feb this year. Love your videos and content. I feel like I've learned so much about this sport from your videos and fanbase. Thanks for your work and efforts sir

Great info. I got target panic back in the day from fear of losing an arrow because I couldn't afford to buy more. Just got back into archery after 15 years away and have basically been doing this process to build the foundation so I don't have to deal with it again.

Great video... I definitely thinkni have some of this.

Great info. Love this format.

Wish you were my coach years ago shot tournament archery in the early 70s shot finger's no releases in bowhunter class best indoor 298 58 xs outdoor score's still stand the 3 yard practice just makes so much sense you shooters out there pay attention this guy knows what he's talking about just watch him shoot amazing thank you for putting the thrill back in my life.

Thank u so much

I stopped shooting competitive years ago cause of this has sponsors offers and couldn't get past it when it hit it's worst so hung it up and still just hunting fight this . Gonna try this out

Definitely gonna give this a shot it's not terrible but Definitely dealing with some target panic when shooting spots I'm good shooting at a vitals target but spots get me

You didn’t mention the step that really helped me. After drawing and letting down, before 3 yards releasing shots with eyes closed. It was amazing, trained my body what a good surprise release was.

Sometimes you're going to shoot and there is no shot, the finger did not press the trigger, the arrow did not fly away, but the brain decides that there was a shot, and the left hand jerks somewhere and after that the finger presses the trigger. No one knows where the arrow will fly after that, and this is the most dangerous form of target panic at the welcome to the psychiatrist level.

Hey Chris!! Coach J here! Love the video!!! Quick question - how would you suggest doing this for a NASP archer? If their “aim-point” is let’s say 5 o’clock outer black to hit the center of the 10 ring? I have a guy who is stuck above his aim-point and cannot come down to his spot. Do I make his aim-point at 5 o’clock outer back huge (like a small paper plate) and go through this routine? Thanks Bud! Hope you are well!

I'd like to try a tension activated bow release . Would you tell me either that one or another to try ? Thank you enjoy your video .

Chris, you mentioned shooting your 50 yd pin early in the video. I shoot a 5 pin site, do you site this in or do you use 20 yrd pin and adjust as you move back. Thanks

Thank you Chris

Defa gona give this a try! Yrs ago I lived and breathed bowhunting and 3D shooting. Had two loops break at full draw in a single day. It ruined me. Always felt like my bow wana gona explode. So bad I stopped shooting for 10yrs. Picked my bow back up and the target panic was still there. Very frustrating. Feels like my bow is ties to the ground and I cant get the pin up to the target.

Target panic has been a struggle for me at times for many years. I am now 59 years of age, and still love bowhunting, but am frustrated by not being able to get the pin where I want it. I am seriously considering a tension release. Great video.

Battled target panic for 6 years used to shoot great had no problems then one day boom couldn’t aim at a dot to or a spot to save my life. I broke out RU-vid watching great archers and went to school for my shot process bought a hinge 2 that’s the 2nd release I’ve ever shot and put in work on my shot process and I’ve fixed myself and back to shooting my best 80-90 shots are so fun and a blast to shoot cause I don’t panic

Do you use a SIGHT MAGNIFIER for long distance shots?

My son is a NASP compound bow archer.(also been in big bow shooting for a couple of years) but has had target panic for the first time this year. He’s always been very successful and I think he puts so much pressure on himself to perform well not only for himself but also for his team. At home his grouping is as good as I’ve ever seen but when he’s at a tournament he just starts jerking the bow and he says it’s target panic. My question is will these drills help him??

Solid protocol to follow man. Thanks for sharing it, and I know it will help many immensely to follow it. Myself included!

Im starting this r n,i don't have target panic when shooting targets but i do when shooting at deer which is when It counts anyway

Good advice. I did something similar. But once I got to my max distance in the basement I started to shrink the dot every few days.

Great Stuff here!!! Very well explained!!!

Really informative, defo trying this!!

Appreciate these tips!

Thanks for the great info chris.

Hey Chris I've been having a problem with settling on the target I don't think it's in doing a drive by I can't hold it on the target at all is there anything I can do to get myself to get to settle on the target

@chrisbeereal could you make a video on how to properly shoot with both eyes open? I’m trying to practice this seeing it is new to me and I can’t seem to figure out how to focus my shooting eye while my non-shooting eye is open. Thanks a bunch and I appreciate and love the content!

What a great teaching video!! Thanks

Can we apply this method to other archery categories too? I'm a thumbshooter (Asian archery) and don't use any devices like a release or clicker.

Thanks so very much God bless you 🙂👍‼️

Thanks mate. Been shooting tournaments, shoot offs on tv and never thought I will get it. Guess who has got it now. I will get over it...just startet the drill. It is just work. Put in work to get here so I just put in work to get out of it.

Love this idea!!

Chris I have learned so much from you and truly gotten excited about archery again. Thanks so much!

Tension release is another bandaid... Blank bailing teaches release movement, which isn't target panic. Target panic comes from aiming at a target and the apprehension of "hitting" something when under pressure. My advice? Remove your bars, or weights. Let that bow quiver, aim, and execute a good shot. Ain't no pin gonna settle like a weighted bow. Do this for a solid week, you'll be surprised at how well the arrows land, provided you "trust the float" and execute a good, non punched shot.

cheers for that!!!

Excellent advice!

Just filmed a video about this two nights ago… so good!!

Thank God for the silverback. I was ready to give up bow hunting after year 36 of being in the woods. My target panic was so bad I couldn't even get my eye in my peep sight without punching the trigger. I was completely ready to sell my bows and buy some camera equipment and film my brother or friends only. Because I have to be in the woods no matter what from September to the 3rd weekend of November in Wisconsin. If I couldn't do that I might as well get a rope tie it to a limb and you can figure out the rest of that story. I tried several different methods but couldn't get rid of it until I got the silverback. My second shot and my target panic was gone. I shot with that for 3 months the only down fall was muscle tension from day to day. I came to the realization that I could never hunt with the silverback. So I bought a ultraview hinge the original aluminum one. I never in my life shot my bow so consistently. Simply the best release I ever shot. so I bought a back up incase something happened. My first shot at a deer my target panic happened but the arrow didn't go off because I didn't go through my shot process. Refocused aimed and drilled that doe like I was Chris Bee himself lol. 2 weeks later a buck for the freezer walked up 2nd weekend of November. And Wham Bam thank you mammoth. I've never been so confident in my treestand and for good reason. Then on Black Friday when the riffle guys were out in the woods Ultraview had a great deal on the hinges so I bought the brass because I love the extra weight. And all my Ultraview hinges have the hunting bracket. Then they came out with the hinge 2 and I had just lost my job of 20 years money was and is tight still so I still shoot with my original hinges and shoot lights out. I use dental binders to keep my hinge part that holds the moon in place. So it don't flop back and forth due to the noise it can create. That's my target panic story And I owe the last 3 years of lights out shooting to the silverback and the only thing that's kept me in the woods hunting is the Ultraview hinge. Thanks Ultraview And by the way. The Ultraview Chris Bee grip is the real deal holyfield also. Warm to the touch and the most consistent repeatable hold you can get for your newer mathews whitetail harvester bow!!🫣 from that to this😃

I’m in the thick of trigger punching and I definitely going to work through this process

I would look at Joel turner who started shot iq. Same troupe of concept but it helped me almost immediately and you continue to do it every time you shoot so you don’t fall back into target panic as long as your shooting

Thank you for sharing! Less Goooah!

Great video Chris this video and the ones from BOW ONLY channel are very helpful!

Thanks Chris

The video I need. Been struggling with it hard lately. Should I give up on the index release? Or try to get over it with the index?

Chris what’s your take on using the blind bale method for getting over punching the trigger/button.

One thing that you didn't talk about was having a shot process. Without a deliberate process, there's a whole lot of time to think, which can be detrimental.

I love ur videos bc im new to archery they help me become a better archer and help with my mission hammer bow

Awesome video, definitely need to put in that work! Thank you Sir!

What sight are you using

When you switch our ur wraps what do use to remove the old glue?

Look to 🐝 for all my archery tips!! Love the content

What if I smoke all 25 shots in the bull first time should I move back to 5 yards now or should I shoot the full 3 days

I caught my self punching to much so I just readjusted how I was going through the steps changed my index for my middle was more relaxed was able to focus more.

You should make sure Lee Ellis watches this 😊

So if I mess up on arrow 48 to 49 at 20 yards and go back to 3 yards how long do I stay at 3 yards

Thanks for the info criss very helpfull. Love youre content. I am a new shooter from the Netherlands and find youre videos verry helpfull. Keep up the good work 👌👌